Tag Archives: maternity clothes

Happy April’s Fool Day! Today we celebrate TummyStyle’s 9th Anniversary! On this day 9 years ago, my daughter Audrey was 4 months old and she accompanied me in her car seat to the County Office in Auburn, California where we officially filed our business license for TummyStyle. Although the site was not alive for another 6 months, it was the inception day of our business.

I know April Fool’s Day is often a prankster and practical joke day, our business is not a joke and I view April Fool's Day as a good omen of things to come. I also view it as the official start of Spring and of new birth, which is fitting for this website which is dedicated to new mothers and new birth.

Our mission from the beginning has been to support, inform, inspire and offer creative fashion pieces for expecting moms and new moms. As a nursing mother for each of my three children I understand how hard it can be to find fashionable nursing clothes that are both flattering and made to easily accommodate breastfeeding (without looking like it!). After not being able to find a nursing dress for my goddaughter’s baptism as I was also a new nursing mom to my own baby, I was inspired to start my own website where women could find fashionable nursing and maternity clothes without needing to leave their house. This idea soon expanded to encompass all aspects of maternity and nursing fashion including maternity swimwear and nursing pajamas and loungewear.

Through our blog which we have maintained for over 4 years, we aspire to inform moms of the latest research on pregnancy, breastfeeding, nutrition, exercise, parenting issues as well as indulge in fun topics on maternity fashion and celebrity pregnancy. We know our site can’t be all things to all people, so we focus on our niche and hope you enjoy your stop here and maybe find a cute fashion piece or two to add to your maternity wardrobe.

We thank all of our customers and supporters throughout the years who have visited our site and supported our business. We wish you health and happiness with your pregnancy, babies and life!

We all know that once you become a parent your laundry volume goes through the roof. Even pregnancy seems to be a precursor for the greater amount of laundry with maternity clothes generally being larger then our pre-pregnancy wardrobe and more frequent wardrobe changes. More body temperature changes and generally running at a higher temperature leads to increased sweating and often greater body discomfort (or fussiness with the way our clothes look on our changing body) which all lead to our laundry bins filling up quicker.

Taking care of a newborn just adds to the laundry pile with babies spitting up on their clothes, blowing out diapers, drooling and generally getting messy as they begin to crawl. Also we all know it is fun to change those cute baby clothes several times a day and show off our newborn in cute clean clothes to friends and family. It can often feel like we are raising a movie star as we shuffle our baby through multiple wardrobe changes gifted from baby showers before they outgrow the outfits in the next week.

As every new mom knows, staying ahead of the laundry can quickly become a fulltime job that never seems to end. If you are like me and most moms out there you probably feel just putting the clothes through the laundry machine with the right amount of detergent is getting them clean. You are also probably patting yourself on the back when you finally get through the overflowing bin of dirty clothes and have returned them nicely folded to the respective shelves and drawers.

It seems we are mistaken. Recent research by the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) indicates that we may not be doing the laundry right. If we are using cold water with antibacterial detergent we are not getting our clothes as clean as we think. We are in fact putting dirty clothes right back on our body and even worse, on our babies.
First when it comes to the water temperature we are washing our clothes in, we need to go hotter. “If you’re putting clothes in cold water, you aren’t getting rid of bacteria,” Marcelle Pick, an ob-gyn and pediatric nurse practitioner at the Women to Women health care center in Yarmouth, Maine says. “For babies, their clothes tend to be more contaminated, so you should definitely wash using hotter temperatures.”

Cute onesies and adorable stuffed animals may look clean and you may hesitate to inflict a hot water machine wash on them, but there’s a good chance that they contain bacteria (and often the really bad kind, from feces). Of course you cannot throw all stuffed animals in the wash, but at least wipe with warm soapy water and make sure they thoroughly dry before you hand them back to your baby to cuddle.
According to the ACI’s recommendations for laundry procedures, cold water can be used to presoak items that have been heavily soiled (especially of the pee and poop variety). However we should use hot water in addition to detergent and bleach, if necessary, to thoroughly sanitize and disinfect dirty laundry.

The second step is using an effective detergent. Ed Osann from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) senior water policy analyst, explains, “Warm or even hot water is not hot enough to sterilize clothes exposed to fecal matter. If detergent is formulated for comparable effectiveness in cold water, then no extra benefit would be expected from warm water use.”
Contrary to what many of us would consider common sense, Osann advised avoiding antibacterial detergents as they actually promote growth of resistant bacteria. He also recommended thoroughly drying clothes in the dryer.

How frequently should we wash our clothing? It depends on what it is. The ACI recommends washing clothes more frequently that are tighter fitting and more likely to carry more bacteria. In our baby’s case, that would be just about everything but jackets, extra layer sweaters or flowy dresses that are not soiled. For ourselves and older children, items like underwear, socks, tanks and T-shirts, tights and even jeggings should be cleaned after each wear. Other items such as jeans and khakis can get 3-4 wears before they need to be cleaned. Towels should be hung to dry after each use and should also be washed every 3-4 days, especially if they are used by kids. Bed sheets should be washed at least every two weeks and more frequently if you sweat a lot, which is common during pregnancy and postpartum.

The next step is maintaining a clean washing and dryer by setting up a regular sanitizing routine. Clothes will get only as clean as the machine allows. Every week, or more if you do tons of laundry, you should run an empty cycle with your washer using hot water along with bleach and detergent to disinfect the washer (some washing machines have a sanitizing cycle labeled on the machine). Next be sure to run an extra rinse cycle to make sure the bleach is completely flushed out. After that it is a good idea to start off by washing your whites with hot water and detergent as there still may be some bleach remaining in the machine from disinfecting. After washing, dry your whites on high for 45 minutes to sanitize your dryer. This way your laundry machine and dryer are sanitized for the rest of your laundry.

When the weather is nice and sunny, you can be more eco-friendly approach to save energy by washing in warm water and line-drying in the sun. The good news is that as your children get older and out of diapers, there are less of the particularly bad bacteria types to contend with, so washing in warm water may do the trick most of the time.

Remember husbands and older kids can do the laundry too, so don’t hesitate to train as needed and delegate. Just make sure they know the laundry for optimal cleanliness.

The pattern is made up of red, navy, and white storks over layed upon each other in an Escher-esk manner. It is very subtle and in now way obnoxious. In fact, most people will look at it and enjoy a stylish looking print but will soon realize that there are storks mixed into the pattern!

The shoulders are sleeveless with a wide red strip to stay on you and provide comfortable support. The front of has a V-neck to reveal enough skin and still have sexiness.

If you haven’t got any yet, then check out the Olian White Bermuda Maternity Shorts for summer. These maternity shorts feature a wide elastic waistband with belt loops that fits under your bump, a zip fly and double buttons. The shorts are super elastic and hit just at the knee which is very versatile for dressing up or down. They have pockets in the front and back and go with just about any summer top in your maternity wardrobe. The best part is that these Bermuda shorts do not look like maternity shorts; you can even wear them postpartum. You will live in these shorts for the warm weather ahead!

This summer season’s must-have pick is Maternal America’s Convertible Maternity Dress/Skirt. This beautiful tiered ruffled dress can be worn as a strapless maternity dress, an cool casual skirt or a swimsuit coverup at the beach or poolside. You can literally wear it anywhere and anyway and look amazing in it.

The elastic smocking is perfect for maternity as it will hug your curves in a flattering way and stay in place over your expanding belly or over your expanding bust. Worn as a maternity dress, the pretty smocking creates an empire waist silhouette that allows plenty of room to drape over your baby bump. The fabric is 100% cotton which breathes well in the warm weather and feels soft against your skin.

This maternity dress/skirt/cover-up piece is an excellent addition to your maternity wardrobe like the gift that keeps on giving. You can continue to wear it in the cooler fall weather as a long maternity skirt.

This item is currently available in Olive Green, Turquoise or Black. Roll over the image on the products page for model photos of each of the colors and styles in wearing this piece.

Jessica Alba, mother of two, recently revealed her secret to her amazing post baby body, a double corset day and night for three months following the births of each of her children!

“It was brutal; it’s not for everyone,” the 31 year old actress and mother of Honor and Haven admited. “It was sweaty, but worth it.”

Recent pictures of Jessica sporting a bikini shows that her sweaty tactic payed off as she displayed her lean killer abs.

A product that would probably have been a lot more comfortable for Jessica and achieved the same results is the Belly Bandit, as worn by Kourtney Kardashian following her pregnancies.

This product is also available in non-designer solid colors:

The Belly Bandit is an excellent product for shrinking your midsection while also appearing more trim and toned while worn under your clothes. It is adjustable and can be tightened as you get smaller and continue to lose weight.

Please note this product is not to be worn during pregnancy or immediately following a Cesarean. Please consult your doctor before wearing after pregnancy.

Although not immediately apparent, the navy red and white print is actually small storks that converge for a beautiful patterned look. The empire waist design is slimming and flattering on all expecting body types. The V-neck sleeveless style is cool for summer and can even be worn as a nursing dress with the elastic cross-over front design.

If ever there was a good-luck dress to be worn during pregnancy, this maternity dress from Maternal America is the one!

Kate Middleton recently topped Vanity Fair’s Best-Dressed Pregnant Ladies list, which was not a big surprise considering her flawless and varied pregnancy fashion. This new list is part of Vanity Fair’s International Best-Dressed Challenge. Vanity Fair explains their choice of Middleton:

“At every life stage—courtship, marriage, and now pregnancy—her classic, insta-iconic pieces have inspired and influenced the wardrobes of sweethearts, brides, and mothers-to-be, respectively. The duchess conceals her (bare minimum of a) bump with three-quarter-length coats and short skirts that also help to draw attention to enviably still-svelte stems.”

Some pretty fancy wordage which we interpret as meaning she dresses well and looks good!

Although we loved Kate’s parade of stylish cross over buttoned coats and patterned tights, we look forward to her spring dress selections as her bump grows. I’m sure she will continue to deserve her top ranking for International Best Dressed Pregnant Ladies!

The top is a an overlay of green and white gumballs with a navy in the empty space while the bottom is a classic navy and white stripes.

The top can be worn strapless (if you aren't too busty) and has a navy striped halter tie that slips through a ring at the bust. The top also come with adjustable side ties for a snug fit all during your pregnancy.

The bottoms have adjustable side ties as well to grow with you as you progress along in your pregnancy.

It's one of the many stylish maternity swimsuits by Maternal America this season!

Here's a new fun and sexy maternity dress from Maternal America called the Stork Maternity Dress. It has an oragne, navy, and white striped pattern with storks blended throughout the pattern. In fact, if you don't really look, you many not even recognize them. That is the beauty of this maternity dress. It's so subtle that it looks elegant and rich.

The shoulders are wide and move down into a V-neck pattern for a level of sexiness. Wear it with heels or flats. Put on a long gold necklace with some dangling earrings and you create a style that really says wow.

The fabric is soft and feels really smooth against skin and will be keep you comfortable all day long.

TummyStyle offers womens fashions for all occasions. We offer only high-quality clothing made from the best fabrics by leading maternity designers from the United States and Europe. View our selection of maternity, nursing, and transition wear clothing. Our fashions are so comfortable and stylish, that they will become part of your extended wardrobe!